Brownstown High School student posts shooting threat on Facebook

BROWNSTOWN, Ill. (KSDK) - A 15-year-old male high school student here was taken into police custody Friday morning after allegedly threatening students by name on Facebook.

It all started before classes when another student told school officials about the alleged threat. The student who made the threat was questioned by school officials and taken into custody by police about 10 a.m.

Superintendent Adam Bussard said the threat mentioned multiple students by name. School officials searched the student and his locker and found nothing unusual.

Bussard said no weapon was found on or off school property, and there was no lock-down or evacuation deemed necessary by school officials.

Below is the content of the message sent to parents by school officials:

"I want to share with you an incident that occurred before school this morning at our high school.

"It came to our attention that one of our students allegedly had made a threat of violence against another student on Facebook. Upon receiving this information, we immediately took action, including bringing the student who allegedly had made the threat into the office and contacting law enforcement authorities at the Fayette County Sheriff's Department.

"We followed our school safety plan, which had been reviewed by law enforcement authorities. We did not have to evacuate or lock down the school because the student in question was under supervision in our office and we determined that he was not armed and not an immediate threat to anyone. He was removed from the campus by the Sheriff's Department.

"Because of student privacy laws and because there is an ongoing law enforcement investigation, we cannot share any more details.

"The safety and welfare of all of our students, faculty and staff are a top priority in our school district. We took immediate action to resolve this threat according to school district policy and our school safety plan. Thank you for your continued support of our school district and our students."

Bussard said school officials have been in touch with the boy's guardian. Fayette County Sheriff's Department officials are not releasing any information about the alleged threats.